In Defense of Roosters

Seedmother DOES NOT ask for donations.

Seedmother is really an artist and commercial illustrator who happens to have an affinity for "chicken life". Chickens inspire my art and I want to share my appreciation of them with others who feel the same way. I have created an array of quality novelty products for the enjoyment of alektorophiles. (I made that up, alektorophobia means fear of chickens so I constructed a logical antonym/neologism).

If that sentiment and my artistic expression strikes your fancy as an effort worth supporting, I appreciate your business. But regardless, please enjoy, read the stories and maybe share a laugh or a tear. The stories are anthropomorphized but largely true, although, I've taken a few liberties with the chronology.

It's best to read the episodes from oldest to newest if this is your first visit.

Seedmother Greeting Cards

Seedmother Stamps

Friday, March 6, 2009

The phone rang, I answered and all I heard was peep, peep, peep, a crank call? No way, it was code for "the chicks are here"! ChickenDad was on his way home from the hatchery with the children, I hurried out to the yard with my closest approximation to a baby blanket to greet them. OMG! Little adorables but this time I would be their Mom. Seven Sweet little red chicks…Seedmother was in love again.I got out a towel and laid it out on the grass for the new babies, I thought we could snuggle a bit but they instinctively knew where the grass was and went for it immediately. I must admit I felt a bit rejected when I saw that they were much more interested in pecking little bugs on the lawn than being with their loving mother. I had been idealizing some tender Madonna & child moments like these.Eventually, they would come to accept me. Still, what mother's heart wouldn't swell with love watching her child peacefully drift off under her protective gaze?

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

There was an old, corroded aluminum storage shed on the property and after careful consideration, John decided that it would be the best site for the chicken coop. So he razed the old structure at much personal discomfort and prepared the space and materials to start laying out the physical structure.It was a race because the babies were on their way.There were some old tent supports left over from a swap meet endeavor by our (wonderfully supportive, as it turns out) landlord and he gave us the go ahead to use them. I could smell the wood burning as John schemed out the design while he was clearing the land every night after work. Mostly he used scraps from the yard, he bought very little actually, and bit by bit both the garden and chicks' new digs were framed in. Since I had made the error of admitting I once used to sew, I was commandeered to help stitch the chicken wire and tent poles into a cat/rat/mongoose proof configuration. Hard work but it finally came together. When it was done it looked kinda baggy like my sweats after a hard workout. It won't ever appear in Architectual Digest but a safe, practical, serviceable home for egg-laying hens nonetheless.

Chickendad seemed on a mission to create his own personal "Costco" to supply all of our food needs, protein in the form of eggs and (Seedmother is not quite ready for this one yet, but yeah, birds for meat) And lots of greens and veggies from the garden. He was driven by the thought of having all that food on hand to single handedly, plow through those mountains of ruins and vine. He bought a chipper to process the vines and created a huge heap of refined golden mulch, added chicken poop (store bought for starters) and wrapped it all up in a tarp to cook. He organized the debris to be repurposed for construction projects.In record time he liberated a 30X80 ft. area of the most fertile, rain forest leaf drop, composted soil you've ever seen. Gorgeous black stuff full of earthworms, centipedes, beetles and other bug protein. Three weeks under a tarp to sterilize it and the gardens would be ready to plant.

Me again

Who is Seedmother?

I'm an agoraphobic artist hiding out in the islands and painting pictures of the new friends I have met in the Ko‘olau rain forest. I have become fascinated with the Hawaiian Moa or local jungle fowl, the feral chickens that inhabit the forests of the Hawaiian islands. They are just like me, always hunting seeds.